1 2 3 4 SUFFOLK COMMUNITY COLLEGE 5 6 BOARD OF TRUSTEES SPECIAL MEETING 7 8 Eastern Campus 9 Culinary Arts Center, Room 212 Riverhead, New York 11901 10 June 24, 2008 11 7:55 a.m. 12 13 BOARD MEMBERS: 14 SHIRLEY PIPPINS, Ph.D., SCC President 15 MARY LOU ARANEO, Vice President WILLIAM D. MOORE, Chairman 16 JERRY KANE 17 ERNESTO MATTACE, JR. BELINDA ALVAREZ-GRONEMAN 18 WALTER C. HAZLITT DAVID OCHOA (By speaker phone) 19 DENNIS McCARTHY AVETTE D. WARE 20 FRANK C. TROTTA 21 ILENE KREITZER, ESQ. TERI KOPP 22 23 24 25 2 1 2 THE CHAIRMAN: You may be wondering why I 3 called all of you together today. No, everybody 4 knows, okay? Good. We will dispense with the 5 niceties then. A piece of business is before us. 6 The resolution on the table, and Item B now for any 7 conversation, discussion you want to have with 8 respect to this agenda item? I throw it open. 9 MR. KANE: David, you want to start? 10 MR. OCHOA: First of all, my apologies. I 11 have a meeting at nine o'clock. I thought it would 12 be a tight squeeze. I received a phone call from 13 Legislator Kennedy asking me if I would reconsider 14 my position and encourage my colleagues to do so on 15 the action we have taken. I thanked him for his 16 call and that is the end of the story. I got a 17 call from Vice President Araneo at my home asking 18 me to attend the meeting. I believe it was a 19 message. 20 To me the bottom line is the issue of 21 governance and responsibility, and I believe that 22 the local preference rules which we have adopted, I 23 believe unanimously, are a good public policy and 24 more importantly make good common sense to create a 25 level field that benefits the taxpayer. That 3 1 2 doesn't mean that you get the lowest bid, you get 3 the best bid. We try to encourage localism at 4 it's best, whether it's staff or contractors. 5 I'm a little surprised we're even meeting at 6 this late hour because of the fact that we have a 7 trustee meeting on Thursday, but regardless, I'm 8 glad that my colleagues responded by having a 9 quorum there. Again, my apologies. I ask that we 10 publicly meet to reaffirm our policy. 11 THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you, David. Anyone else 12 wish to comment on the resolution before us this 13 morning? 14 MR. OCHOA: If the speakers could identify 15 themselves and talk a little bit louder so I can 16 catch you on the intercom. 17 MR. HAZLITT: It goes directly in opposition 18 to the posturing we have been doing over the last 19 couple of years. I think at one of our meetings a 20 couple of years ago I said never bite the hand that 21 feeds you. While it's -- do we let the county 22 dictate to us and say no, we are not going to give 23 you the library and all the other items in the 24 capital program, and the only ones that are going 25 to get hurt are the students and taxpayers of 4 1 2 Suffolk County. 3 I'm not enthused about it, but it's my 4 intention to support the resolution today. Then we 5 are going to face a suit for the accreditation from 6 Middle States. We have been basing our position 7 strictly on what Middle States have said, that for 8 your accreditation you have to do A,B, C and D. If 9 we don't do it, then Belinda is a member of the 10 committee, you're in a better position to pass on 11 that than I'm in. 12 The question is who is going to sue us. The 13 bottom line is twenty-two thousand students. If we 14 lose our accreditation and failure to issue 15 degrees, who gets hurt? It's ego, for Christ's 16 sake. At this stage of the game, my ego doesn't 17 mean anything. I don't care about that. We're 18 blinking, is what we're doing. It's something, in 19 my judgment, it has to be done, strictly for the 20 best interest of the people that we serve. 21 MR. TROTTA: I agree with you, Walter. At 22 this time, we exhausted the subject over many, many 23 meetings in executive session and in public. The 24 college has become a focal point of a variety of 25 issues that doesn't need to be on the table, and I 5 1 2 think the number one issue is the students at the 3 college here, capital projects and things that need 4 to move ahead. I plan on supporting this today. 5 MR. HAZLITT: Except the fact from here on in 6 the county is going to dictate to us exactly what 7 we can and cannot do. 8 MR. TROTTA: As you said, there is a suit 9 that will make those determinations at a later time 10 and we will deal with that at that time. 11 MR. MATTACE: I couldn't have said it much 12 better myself. Walter. I thank you for expressing 13 what is best in your mind, my mind and Frank's mind 14 at this point. I have to disagree as far as the 15 county dictating to us. I think at this point what 16 has to be understood, based on the preference law 17 and the understanding that we had and discussed, 18 having a legislator on that committee, they're 19 going to work with us as partners. If they don't, 20 the community, the citizens and students in this 21 county are going to know what is going on. 22 Enough already. It's going on for months to 23 the point where I think many people in this room 24 have agonized and are sick over it and it's time to 25 stop. I think we have to look at our charges; that 6 1 2 is the students at this college and all three 3 campuses, the citizens of this county who fund it, 4 and ourselves and our heart, what we have to do. 5 THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Ernie. I know you 6 can't help but think this is capitulation, and I 7 agree with you. In this instance, however, I don't 8 think that the Board's action can be equated with 9 agreement with the county position. Capitulation 10 by this board reflects acknowledgment of a 11 dysfunctional relationship between a county sponsor 12 and a college community. The Board's decision 13 today will be a strategic decision to ensure the 14 accomplishment of a greater good; in this case, the 15 constituents, twenty-three thousand students, to 16 ensure the construction of facilities which we have 17 deemed critical to the mission of the college. 18 It does not mean acceptance with a status quo 19 nature of the relationship between the county, 20 which doesn't yet understand state law and how the 21 college and county can work as partners. 22 There is a Buddhist monk who is a peacemaker 23 who said that when you have true dialogue, both 24 sides are willing to change. We don't have that. 25 I pray for the day when we do have that. We have a 7 1 2 dedicated Board of Trustees who give of their time 3 selflessly and their money and efforts and at some 4 point in time there will be a respect accorded 5 those efforts by those who appointed them from the 6 Governor's office or legislature who have to 7 understand when we're appointed, we're doing the 8 best that we can with the best interests of the 9 institution guiding our thinking. 10 Like I said, capitulation does not mean 11 agreement. There is a litigation going on. I hope 12 down the road we will have understanding, whether 13 we can sit and talk rather than sticking our stakes 14 in the ground and saying I refuse to budge. Any 15 motion that you can ascribe to feeling how you feel 16 sitting here today in this instance, I share it. 17 Thanks. 18 MR. KANE: I agree, Bill, that we have a 19 dedicated Board of Trustees, we have a great 20 president, we have a great chairman. We have come 21 a long way in the last five years, probably the 22 best this college has ever been. But I've been 23 around a long time and I've known a lot of county 24 executives. I spent a lot of time in the Dennison 25 Building and if I said it once, I said it a hundred 8 1 2 times, even my closest friends, they also treated 3 the college like it's a little department down the 4 hall and I don't think it's changed one whit. 5 At some point, if the trustees are going to 6 mean anything, it means that they're going to have 7 to change their own decision. I can't possibly 8 vote for this resolution today. It only continues 9 with it. 10 THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you, Jerry. Any other 11 discussion? 12 MR. McCARTHY: Bill, the discussion that I 13 would like to have centers around I think we should 14 make sure that everybody understands from counsel 15 and the opinion from outside counsel, as to what -- 16 THE CHAIRMAN: (Interposing) Can I interrupt 17 for one quick second? Is this something that you 18 believe should be suited for executive session? 19 MR. McCARTHY: That is what I'm getting to. 20 I think we should have that discussion because 21 Walter, in his eloquence, referred to it. I think 22 we should get an understanding here before we take 23 this vote, because I'm only going to be around here 24 until Thursday. My term is up. But I think this 25 Board should know and the administration should 9 1 2 well understand that by making decisions like this, 3 what the ramifications are. 4 In the long term, and there is going to be a 5 lot of money spent in that effort, a lot of 6 taxpayers' dollars spent in that effort, I think 7 that should be laid on the table here before this 8 vote is taken. It could well be one thing that 9 somebody is going to refer to down the road. I 10 would like to suggest, if that discussion is going 11 to take place, I think it probably should be of an 12 executive session. I think we should have it. 13 THE CHAIRMAN: Relates to the present 14 litigation? 15 MR. McCARTHY: Absolutely. 16 THE CHAIRMAN: I will take that as a motion 17 to discuss this litigation in executive session. 18 Is there a second? 19 MR. TROTTA: Second. 20 (The meeting was recessed at 8:05 a.m. and 21 resumed at 8:30 a.m.) 22 THE CHAIRMAN: All right. We have a 23 resolution before us. Is someone willing to make 24 the motion to approve resolution 2008.38two zero 25 zero? 10 1 2 MR. McCARTHY: I make a motion. 3 MR. MATTACE: So move. 4 THE CHAIRMAN: Do I have a second? 5 MR. MATTACE: Second. 6 THE CHAIRMAN: Let's take a vote. 7 MR. HAZLITT: Roll call vote, Mr. Chairman. 8 THE CHAIRMAN: Trustee Mattace? 9 MR. MATTACE: I approve the resolution based 10 on the future of the institution and the students 11 of this county for their best interests. 12 MR. TROTTA: I will vote for the resolution 13 for the same reason given by Mr. Mattace. 14 MS. WARE: I agree accordingly. It's for the 15 best interests of the students at the college. 16 MS. ALVAREZ-GRONEMAN: I agree. Simply just 17 because I'm just concerned about the kids here at 18 the college. 19 THE CHAIRMAN: Trustee McCarthy? 20 MR. McCARTHY: My feeling on this resolution 21 it's in the best interests of the students and this 22 college and the independence of this Board of 23 Trustees. I will vote with the majority, hoping 24 that the board keeps in mind in the future that the 25 utmost importance here is that independent college 11 1 2 operation and the independence of this Board of 3 Trustees, I will vote for this resolution. 4 THE CHAIRMAN: Trustee Kane? 5 MR. KANE: I vote no, and I feel that we have 6 developed a very fair Local Preference Law. I feel 7 that the power of that law should lie with the 8 trustees. That is why we were appointed here, so I 9 vote no. 10 THE CHAIRMAN: Trustee Hazlitt? 11 MR. HAZLITT: I'm voting yes because the 12 negative aspects of what could happen to the 13 college outweigh any attitude that we may have as 14 far as capitulation or whatever you want to say. 15 The bottom line, as I stated before us, are the 16 students and the college, and we're talking 17 twenty-eight million dollars, you got my attention. 18 I vote yes. 19 THE CHAIRMAN: It's my turn to vote. I am 20 so unhappy. I respect everything that this board 21 has shared in their opinions and David has been 22 with us by phone, spoke passionately eloquently and 23 I agree, Trustee Kane, I agree. Dennis, with you 24 as well. This is a tough, tough, place. 25 In a fair place and in a place where people 12 1 2 want to work together they will have dialogue and 3 some day we will get there for between three 4 thousand students I will vote yes for the 5 resolution. 6 The resolution is adopted. No other business 7 before the board, entertain a motion to adjourn. 8 MR. MATTACE: So move. 9 MS. WARE: Second. 10 THE CHAIRMAN: Thank you all. 11 (TIME NOTED: 9:33 A.M.) 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 13 1 2 CERTIFICATION 3 4 STATE OF NEW YORK) 5 ) ss: 6 COUNTY OF SUFFOLK) 7 8 I, JUDI GALLOP, a Stenotype Reporter 9 and Notary Public for the State of New 10 York, do hereby certify: 11 THAT this is a true and accurate transcription 12 of the Suffolk Community College Board of Trustees 13 meeting held on June 24, 2008. 14 I further certify that I am not 15 related, either by blood or marriage, to 16 any of the parties in this action; and 17 I am in no way interested in the 18 outcome of this matter. 19 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my 20 hand this 28th day of July, 2008. 21 22 ________________________ JUDI GALLOP 23 24 25